Bachelor: “From Varese to the USA, I’ll tell you about my American dream”

Seven thousand three hundred and fifty kilometers, six hours less than the time zone, the view that is lost in the blue of the Atlantic Ocean touching the marvel of the Bermuda Islands. The new life of Andrea Scapolo, Laveno Mombello’s 23-year-old goalkeeper, passes through this, from the distance that separates his hometown in the province of Varese from his new home, South Carolina, the twenty-fourth most populous American state, directly overlooking the ocean. . “I’m forty-five minutes from the beach – says Andrea smiling – every now and then we go to Myrtle Beach, the best known as well as the most beautiful; I like the climate, it’s always hot, 18-20 degrees on average even in December, the cold doesn’t even know what it is, unlike where I was before, in New Hampshire, where I suffered so much, one of the reasons I led to a change of city ”.

From Varese to the USA

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Before the stars and stripes experience Andrea played in Varese, experiencing two failures on his skin, the second of which particularly mortified him: “I didn’t live these two periods well, I especially regretted the last one because I had played a good year, but also because I should have been captain in the following season. I wanted to do more, but it wasn’t possible ”. Then, while he was finishing university (he has a degree in Communication Sciences from Insubria in Varese), he continued the path with “Yes We College” and, arms and luggage, completed the paperwork, in early August 2021 flew to the United States. The first stop was Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, New Hampshire, combining study and football. “I lived my first experience from August to December, the matches are every three days, the season does not last long, after which I decided to return to Italy without playing the Spring Season, which is played from January to April; the team was first in the standings, we won 21 games out of 22 and we were the favorites for the final victory of the Ncaa tournament, but unfortunately we missed the penalty kicks ”.

Departures and returns

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The return to Italy was characterized by an unpleasant episode: “It was one of the first evenings I spent after returning in February. I went to a disco in Milan with my friends and we were attacked at the exit. Unfortunately I can say that I am happy for the ending, we have not been seriously hurt, I am only sorry to have lost the necklace that my father had given me (who passed away a few years ago, whose bond with Andrea was very close, ed) “. A short interlude in Switzerland and the continuation of studies in online mode have then given way to the return to American soil, this time at Francis Marion University in Florence, South Carolina, where the season is currently underway and which, likewise of many injuries, is having a constant trend.

Another kick

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Having players of different nationalities, the differences can be noticed a lot: “The Americans are more physical, Italians and Europeans are much stronger on a technical and tactical level”. Specifically, there are only four Americans and twenty-eight foreigners in the team, including three Italians; Andrea Scapolo between the posts, the twenty-three year old Gabriele Cavarero – former Chieri player – right / left winger and Daniel Franceschetti, born in 2000, right back and central defender. Andrea carried the American dream in his heart from an early age, as he himself says: “I have always wanted to have an experience abroad and especially in the United States, which I fell in love with when I came to visit my uncle Cristiano (Bachelor, former Serie A player, ed) who has lived and worked here for twenty years ”. In the United States, sport is “experienced in a very serious way, there is careful work by all the staff, including the medical one; many details are taken care of such as the structures, which are exceptional and the fields. The season lives a lot on programming, also because it is short, they are four full months that include the regular season, the playoffs and the finals. Here, a weak point are the referees, who are not really excellent, they commit many errors, even trivial ones, they are not yet at the level of the Italian and European ones ”. From goalkeeper to goalscorer … momentary is a moment for Andrea, who a few weeks ago also scored an all-Italian goal, a decisive result for the result: “We were playing against University of Montevallo, third day of the championship, we were dominating and, I don’t know how, we ended up trailing 2-1; in the ninetieth, on the last action one of my Italian teammates went to take a corner kick, I positioned myself in the area and, as soon as I received the ball, I kicked in a semi overhead, scoring my first goal from an open play in career. It was a great emotion “

Path

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The skill between the posts is growing more and more, as can also be seen from the recognition that the “Defensive Player of the Week” for men’s football received a few days ago: “We play two games a week and the league always evaluates the best players by role. Since I had closed both matches with two clean sheets I was given this award; in America they look at the statistics a lot, they highlight every little thing ”. There is a different basic culture than in Italy: “Americans are very welcoming and helpful, they help you from all points of view, even if they don’t know you, as happened to me as soon as I landed at the airport where a lady seeing me a little lost, he accompanied me. They are a totally organized and programmed people: although they are very quick and fast in doing things, they still manage to give the right attention to people and, although there are obviously also the negative sides, I like them very much “. A love and a passion that of Andrea Scapolo both for football and for America that started from afar and also forged by his uncle Cristiano, with whom the relationship is splendid: “We are quite close since he is in Cincinnati, about two hours of flight from me, we practically always feel both now and before; this summer we spent a month together in Utah and then in Hawaii, we have a really great relationship ”. Returning to Italy or staying in the United States, Andrea – who in the meantime is doing a master’s degree in “Business Administration” obtained thanks to a scholarship – has not yet decided: “I have not yet experienced America in other respects, I want to try to have a work experience and see how it goes, who knows if I like it, I may not decide to move here permanently “.